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This year's Kiosk Show expected to pull '`quality' attendees

October 23, 2004

BOSTON - Getting on the attendee list for the third annual Kiosk Show hasn't been easy. The show simply shutout some would-be attendees from the event now happening in Boston. But Greg Swistak, show co-coordinator and a vice president of Net World Alliance, which owns the show, said the show's exclusivity will benefit exhibitors and attendees.

Swistak said rules for The Kiosk Show are very selective because organizers acknowledge that many exhibitors want more time to spend with "quality" customers.

"I have gone to many other shows where I spent a lot of time talking to people, but I didn't end up with many leads, and that's very disappointing," said Swistak, who has owned his own kiosk company

Tom Weaver, vice president of sales and marketing for Kiosk Information Systems, said he sees an advantage to attending a show where he's going to be put in front of the "right" people.

"I think it probably will be a big help," Weaver said. "If someone shows up at your booth, you're obligated to speak with that person, and sometimes all they want to do is sell you their product."

Karla Guarina, marketing director for Kiosk Information Systems, said she knows that this show is going to stand out, even if she reserves the right to comment on the exclusivity policy's effectiveness until after the show.

"I think this year the show attracted a lot more quality prospects," Guarino said.

An IBM Retail Store representative attending the show shared the same sentiment. "I think it's a great idea they have come

Apunix, best known for developing kiosk software, brought examples of its complete programming solutions, which include "Ask Henry." The Home Depot deployment was developed in partnership with Olea Exhibits/Displays.

up with" for the show concept, the representative said. "You have vendors at other shows that are walking through handing out printers, and it's a real distraction because those people aren't there to buy. Â… I think the show is going to be interesting this year, too, because all of the exhibitors will be offering complete kiosk solutions, and that's a little different."

The "complete kiosk solutions" are a part of The Kiosk Show format as well, Swistak said. When Lief Larson, show founder and now co-coordinator, set the rules, he wanted exhibitors to provide complete turnkey-solution displays. In order to have a wide range of exhibitors, peripheral companies that aren't capable of providing "complete" solutions were paired up with other companies, so that the two could complement each other.

"When we had companies signing up for attendance, we were very careful to see how they responded to certain questions," Swistak explained. "If they said they didn't plan to buy anything, or that they supplied certain components to the trade, red flags went up. We made this year's show more exclusive for the exhibitors. And we wanted exhibitors and attendees who are interested in complete solutions, not piecemeal solutions, at the show."

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